Cloth-holding device for buttonhole attachments



y 1951 J. CONNORS 2,559,114

CLOTH-HOLDING DEVICE FOR BUTTONHOLE ATTACHMENTS Filed 001;. 27, 1949 Zhwentor M Gttornegs Patented July 3, 1951 CLOTH-HOLDING DEVICE FOR BUTTON- HOLE ATTACHMENTS John Connors, Hamden, Conn., assignor to The Greist Manufacturing Company, New Haven, Conn., a corporation of Connecticut Application October 27, 1949, Serial No. 123,962

Claims.

I This invention relates to sewing-machine'attachments and more particularly to a clothholding device for certain of such attachments, or a means to prevent the cloth being pulled upwardly by the needle when it is withdrawn from the cloth, or other material being sewed, upon the upward movement of the needle bar.

As illustrated, the invention is applied to a buttonhole attachment designed to be attached to the usual household sewing machine after removal of the usual presser foot, the attachment being secured to the usual presser bar. In the use of certain of these attachments, such for example as a device for stitching buttonholes, where the feeding foot must be provided with a relatively large slot through which the needle operates, difficulty is sometimes encountered in that the cloth which is being sewed will tend to blouse or be drawn upwardly with the upward movement of the needle. This is due to the fact that the edges of the slot in the feeding foot do not lie closely adjacent the needle and, therefore, cannot hold the cloth downwardly upon the machine bed at points close to the needle.

It is contemplated by the present invention to provide a movable cloth-holding member which will be carried by the attachment and which is provided with a holding foot, or end portion, which will lie relatively close to the needle. This member is actuated or moved by the fork arm, or some other movable part of the attachment, so that when the fork arm descends to drive the needle through the material being sewed the forward or operating end of the holding member will be moved downwardly against the cloth or material and will remain in this position during the initial portion of the upward movement of the needle. Thus, the holding member will prevent the lifting of the cloth by the needle until the latter is loosened from the material, at which time, the holding member will be raised from the cloth to permit release of the latter for the feeding operation. I In other words, while the cloth is held down against the bed when the needle begins its upward stroke so that it will be loosened from the cloth and not draw the latter upwardly with it, the cloth will be released after the needle is drawn therefrom so that it will not be gripped or held during the feeding movements of the cloth and, therefore, will not interfere with these feeding movements. The hold-down device being actuated from the fork arm or some other movable part of the device which is in turn actuated by the fork arm, will be synchronized in its movement with that of the needle bar and with the feed mechanism so as not to interfere with the normal sewing operations.

One object of the present invention is to provide a cloth-holding device for a sewing-machine attachment such as a buttonhole attachment.

Another object of the invention is to provide a cloth-holding attachment for a buttonhole 01' similar sewing-machine attachment which will engage the cloth being sewed and hold the same against blousing, but at the same time release the cloth so as not to interfere with the proper feeding of the latter.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a cloth-holding device for a buttonhole or similar attachment having a pivoted fork arm operated from the needle bar of the sewing machine, the cloth holding device comprising a lever pivoted on the frame on the side opposite that upon which the fork arm is disposed, and to provide means for actuating this lever in movements about its pivot by movement of the fork arm.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a cloth-hold-down device for a buttonhole or similar atachment of the character described above in which the hold-down device comprises a lever pivoted on the frame and having an end or foot portion to engage the material being sewn and a cam or actuating member mounted to oscillate on the frame and operated by the fork arm, this oscillating member engaging a part of the hold-down lever to actuate the same.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a cloth hold-down device for a buttonhole attachment as described above in which the cam member actuated from the fork arm is a rotatable member secured to the shaft upon which the fork arm is pivoted so that when this shaft is actuated in a step-by-step movement the cam member will also be operated in a step-bystep movement, the cam member being secured to the end of the shaft opposite that upon which the fork arm is disposed.

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a buttonhole attachement having my cloth-holding device applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged elevational view of the front end of the, attachment showing the holddown device in a different position from that shown in Fig. l; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the cloth-holding lever.

As illustrated in the drawings, the buttonhole attachment comprises a frame It having a base plate 1 I upon the under side of which is mounted a feed blade I2. The feed blade is pivoted to the plate by the pivot pin I3, which pin is slidable in the slot l4 in the plate I so as to adjust the position of the pivot pin and thereby adjust the lateral throw of the forward portion of the, feed blade. The pivot pin l3 may be adjusted in the slot M by means of the adjusting arm I5 attached to the pivot pin at its forward end and provided adjacent its rear end with a plurality of teeth It designed to be engaged with the flanged edge I? of a housing member I8 mounted upon the frame.

Secured to the feed blade I2 is an endless rack member 23, the teeth of which are engaged by those of a' pinion 2| mounted upon a shaft 22, which shaft is rotatably mounted in a housing 23 carried by an actuating lever 24 pivoted at 25 upon the frame plate I The rack member 23 may be held in place by a cover plate 26 pivoted to the frame at 27 and provided with a fiat spring member 25 which engages the lower side of the rack member 23.

The lever 24 oscillates in a substantially horizontal plane about the pivot pin 25 and at the forward end of this lever is provided a pin or roller which acts as a cam follower and is disposed in the cam track 3| of a cam wheel 32, this cam. wheel being secured to a shaft 33 rotatably mounted in spaced upstanding frame members 34 which may be formed integrally with a plate 35 riveted or otherwise secured to the base plate I Also secured to the members 34 is an adapter 36 by which the device may be secured to the presser bar of a sewing machine after the presser foot has been removed.

It will be obvious from the above arrangement that when the cam wheel 32 is rotated, the lever 24 will be oscillated as will also the pinion 2| carried thereby, and the engagement of this pinion with the teeth of the rack 25 will effect oscillation of the feed blade and thereby effect lateral movements of the work due to the fact that a feeding foot 31 is carried at the forward end of the feed blade i2. As shown in Fig. 2, this feeding foot is provided with a relatively large oblong opening 38 through which the needle is designed to operate and this foot may be roughened as shown at 39 on its lower face so as to properly engage and move the material which is being sewed.

Secured to the shaft 33 is a ratchet wheel 40, the teeth of which are engaged by a pawl 4| pivoted at 42 to a fork arm 43 loosely mounted upon the shaft 33, this pawl being urged into engagement with the ratchet wheel by the spring 44. The fork arm 43 is provided with a bifurcated end 45 designed to be engaged with the needle bar of the sewing machine so that the arm 43 will be reciprocated upon reciprocation of the needle bar. This will effect step-by-step rotation of the ratchet wheel 40, and, therefore, of the shaft 33, and of the cam wheel 32 secured to this shaft. As has already been described, rotation of the cam wheel will effect lateral oscillation of the lever 24 and lateral feeding movements of the work.

Secured to the shaft 22 is a ratchet wheel 4?, the teeth of which are adapted to intermittently engage a resilient pawl 48 fixed to the frame upon oscillation of the lever 24. The engagement of the teeth of the ratchet 41 by the pawl 43 during lateral movements of the lever 24 will effect step-by-step rotation of the shaft 22 and, therefore, of the pinion 2| carried thereby. This step-by-step rotation of the pinion 2|, by its engagement .with the teeth of the rack 20, causes longitudinal movements of the feed blade |2 to which the rack is secured, so as to effect longitudinal movements of the cloth for proper oblong stitching around the buttonhole.

The operation of the parts above described is substantially like that of the device shown in the Almquist Patent Number 2,482,607, granted September 20, 1949, so that no further description thereof is believed to be necessary. It will be apparent, however, that upon oscillation of the fork arm 43 by'the needle bar of the sewing machine the mechanism will cause the material engaged by the feeding foot 31 to be moved laterally and at the same time feed longitudinally so that it will travel in a generally oblong path and effect a line of zig-Zag stitches at each side of the buttonhole.

A cloth hold-down. lever 50 is pivoted at 5| to one of the upstanding members 34v on the side of the frame opposite that upon which the fork arm 43 is disposed. This lever, as shown in Fig. 5, comprises, a rear portion 52 disposed in a substantially vertical plane, and a forward portion 53 disposed in a substantially horizontal plane, the latter portion terminating in. a downwardly projecting cloth-engaging foot 54 which, as

' shown more especially in Figs. 2 and 4, lies withshaft 33. This cam member or ratchet wheel is in the plane of a cam follower 51 provided upon the portion 52 of the lever 50. This follower is provided with a tooth 58 designed to engage the teeth 56 of the ratchet wheel 55 so that upon rotation of the ratchet wheel the teeth 56 will ride over the tooth 58 and depress the rear end of the lever 50, as shown in Fig. 4, thus raising the holding foot 54 from the material being sewn. The tooth 58 is provided with an inclined approaching surface 59 so that the teeth 56 will ride smoothly over this member and, when one of the teeth 56 passes the tooth 58, the lever will be released so that its rear end will be moved upwardly by the spring 60, thus urging the holding foot 54 downwardly into engagement with the material. The spring 60, as shown in Fig. 4, is secured at its lower end to the rear end of the lever 52 and at its upper end is secured to an arm 6| provided upon the adjacent upstanding frame member 34.

The fork arm is shown adjacent the upper end of its stroke in Fig. 1 of the drawings, and it will be seen that one of the ratchet teeth 56 is about to engage the high point of the tooth 58 on the follower 51, and that the holding foot 54 has been raised from the material being sewed so that it will not interfere with the feeding operation of the material, which takes place on the upward movement of the fork arm.

As the fork arm continues upwardly from the position shown in Fig. 1, the ratchet tooth rides over the high point of the tooth 58, as, shown in Fig. 4, allowing the spring 60 to lift the rear end of the lever 5|! and. resiliently urge the holdin foot 54 against the material. The fork arm now descends with the needle bar and, as the shaft 33 and ratchet wheel 55 are not rotated durin this descending movement, the holding foot 54 will remain in the position shown in Fig. 4.

The holding foot will also remain in this position during the initial part of the upward movement of the fork arm and as the ascent of the needle is in any event more rapid than the lifting of the holding foot 54, the needle will be loosened from the cloth while the latter is engaged by the holding foot so that blousing of the material will be prevented. It will, of course, be understood that during operation of the attachment, the ratchet wheel 55 rotates in a counter-clockwise direction, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4.

Upon the ascent of the needle bar from its lower position shown in Fig. 4, one of the teeth 56 of the ratchet 55 will ride up the inclined surface 59 and again engage the high point of the tooth 58 to release the pressure of the holding foot 54 from the cloth and, thus, permit a subsequent feeding operation of the material.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that it is not to be limited to all of the details shown, but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, a shaft rotatably mounted on the frame, a fork arm pivotally mounted on the shaft adjacent one end thereof and adapted for connection with the needle bar, a cloth-holding lever pivoted on the frame and having a downwardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, and a cam member fixedly secured to said shaft and having a plurality of cam surfaces arranged to engage said lever and move said foot upwardly;

2. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, a shaft rotatably mounted on the frame,

a fork arm pivotally mounted on the shaft adjacent one end thereof and adapted for connection with the needle bar, a cloth-holding lever pivoted on the frame and having a downwardlyextending cloth-engaging foot, and a cam member secured to said shaft in position to engage said lever and move said foot upwardly, said lever being disposed adjacent the end of the shaft remote from that upon which the fork arm is pivoted.

3. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, a shaft rotatably mounted on the frame, a fork arm pivotally mounted on the shaft adjacent one end thereof and adapted for connection with the needle bar, a cloth-holding lever pivoted on the frame and having a downwardlyextending cloth-engaging foot, and a cam member secured to said shaft in position to engage said lever and move said foot upwardly, said cam member being spaced from said fork arm to be disposed adjacent the end of the shaft remote from that upon which the fork arm is pivoted.

4. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft adjacent one of said members and connected to the shaft to actuate the same, a lever pivoted to the other of said upstanding members and having a downwardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, and means secured to said shaft to actuate said lever.

5. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft adjacent one of said members and connected to the shaft to actuate the same, a lever pivoted to the other of said upstanding members and having a downwardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, and a toothed Wheel secured to said shaft to actuate said lever.

B. A sewing-machine attachment comprising frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft adjacent one of said members and connected to the shaft to actuate the same, a lever pivoted to the other of said upstanding members and having a downwardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, a toothed wheel. secured to said shaft, and means on said lever in position to be engaged by the teeth of said wheel to move said lever and raise said cloth-engaging foot.

'7. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft adjacent one of said members and connected to the shaft to actuate the same, a lever pivoted to the other of said upstanding members and having a down" wardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, and a toothed wheel secured to said shaft to actuate said lever, said toothed wheel being disposed adjacent one end of said shaft and said fork arm being disposed adjacent the other end of the shaft.

8. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, a shaft rotatably mounted on the frame, a fork arm pivotally mounted on the shaft adjacent one end thereof and adapted for connection with the needle bar, a cloth-holding lever pivoted on the frame and having a downwardlyextending cloth-engaging foot, a cam member fixedly secured to said shaft and having a plurality of cam surfaces arranged to engage said lever and move said foot upwardly, and spring means engaging said lever to urge said foot downwardly into contact with the cloth.

9. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members to extend transversely of the frame, a toothed wheel secured to said shaft adjacent each end thereof, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft and having a pawl thereon in position to engage one of said wheels, and a lever pivoted to the frame and having a downwardly-extending cloth-em gaging foot, said lever having a follower thereon in position to be engaged by the other of said wheels to actuate said lever and move the foot upwardly.

10. A sewing-machine attachment comprising a frame, spaced upstanding members secured to the frame, a shaft rotatably mounted in said members to extend transversely of the frame, a toothed wheel secured to said shaft adjacent each end thereof, a fork arm pivoted on the shaft and having a pawl thereon in position to engage one of said wheels, a lever pivoted to the frame and having a downwardly-extending cloth-engaging foot, said lever having a follower thereon in position to be engaged by the other of said wheels to actuate said lever and move the foot upwardly, and spring means connected to the lever and frame to urge said foot downwardly.

JOHN CONNORS.

No references cited. 

